1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a content providing device, data processing method, and computer program. More particularly, the present invention relates to a content providing device, data processing method, and computer program whereby content information and so forth employed by a client is obtained to manage client information, and a content is provided based on management information.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various data, such as audio data such as music or the like, image data such as a movie or the like, game programs, various types of application programs, or the like (hereafter, referred to as content) is recorded in a recording medium, e.g., an information recording medium (disc), such as a Blu-ray Disc (registered trademark), DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), or the like, and this medium can be provided to a user. For example, a Blu-ray Disc (registered trademark) employing blue laser is a disc capable of recording with high density, and can record a mass picture content or the like as high-definition data, and is employed widely.
A content stored disc is provided to a user, and the user can employ various types of playback device such as a PC (Personal Computer), disc player, or the like to play and use a content.
A content is recorded in a disc in a format stipulated beforehand. In the case of playing the content recorded in a predetermined format, processing employing a playlist recorded in a disc as playback order information along with the content can be performed. The playlist is a list stipulating the playback order of contents. For example, in a case wherein
multiple movie contents 1, 2, 3, and so on, and
multiple commercial contents a, b, c, and so on are recorded in a disc, a playlist stipulates the playback order of contents such as
movie content 1→commercial a→movie content 2→commercial b→movie content 3→commercial c and so on, and the content playback order is determined, and playback processing is performed. Note that the number of playlists is not restricted to one, and a user can select and use a playlist from multiple playlists.
For example, in the case of a ROM disc wherein no new data recording can be performed, a disc stored content is basically fixed. Even immediately after the disc is provided to a user, the content of a playback content is not changed even after a certain period of time elapses. However, there is a case wherein a content such as a commercial or the like is preferably changed to the latest commercial or latest preview information, for example, after a certain period of time has elapsed since the disc was provided to the user. Also, even with a main content such as a movie content or the like, in a case wherein an update version such as corrected version, revised version, or the like has been created after the release of a disc, or the like, there is a case wherein the update version thereof is preferably provided to a user. Further, there is a case wherein data not stored in a disc when the disc was provided, is preferably provided to the disc possessing user as new additional data.
With regard to disc stored data, an arrangement has been disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3772023 as the related art wherein data to be modified in a post-release manner and additional data and the like are provided to a user from a server through a network. Japanese Patent No. 3772023 has disclosed a content using system wherein a link image corresponding to a disc stored content is downloaded from a server to be stored in a storage unit such as a hard disk of a playback device, and the downloaded link image is played along with a disc recorded content. Such a system is employed, whereby a commercial of the latest version can be obtained from the server as the above-mentioned link image to subject this to playback processing.
However, the arrangement disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3772023 is an arrangement wherein link information is recorded in a disc beforehand, and a downloaded content recorded in a hard disk is extracted and played in accordance with the link information, and is an arrangement wherein elapsed time since start of playback of a disc recorded content is measured at the time of playback to control playback timing, and playback of a disc content is stopped at predetermined set time to switch to playback of a downloaded content of the hard disk.
The arrangement disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3772023 is an arrangement wherein with a certain content being provided from the server since release of a disc as a premise, link information is recorded in the disc under the premise thereof beforehand. Accordingly, it is not assumed that post-release data not scheduled at the time of release of a disc is provided to a user, and it is difficult to provide such data to the server in a post-release manner to play this instead of a disc stored content. Also, link information is recorded in the disc beforehand, which leads to a problem wherein post-release data is unavailable with a disc where link information is not recorded. Also, the playback device measures elapsed time since start of playback of a content, which leads to a problem wherein burden of the playback device becomes great.
Also, the server for executing content providing processing provides a content by receiving a content request from a user, but providing content in which the user is uninterested, for example, is meaningless.